REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - Indonesia and Germany will strengthen their cooperation as German business representatives visit Indonesia to talk on cooperation opportunities intensively.

Head of Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), Sofjan Wanandi, said the visit of German investors signalled investment opportunities such as from Germany's Small and Medium Enterprises. 

Germany has become one of the gates for Indonesian products to enter European Union. "Germany is not our competitor. Thus, further cooperation will give more benefit to Indonesia," he said on Monday on the sidelines of Indonesia-Germany Business Forum.

Indonesian Minister of Trade, Gita Wirjawan, said they still discussed the scheme of cooperation between Indonesia, Germany and European Union in Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). President will also discuss CEPA in his visit to Europe in March 2013. Wirjawan said Indonesia would propose the development of sustainable products, such as palm oil, forestry products, cocoa and rubber.

Despite the increasing trade value, Indonesia still suffers deficit on trade with Germany as Indonesia still import materials for industry. Germany's First Secretary Cultural, Michaell Hoffmann, said Indonesia-Germany trade value had reached six billion USD. "We set the target of trade volume between Indonesia and Germany in 12 billion USD before 2015," he said.

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